2 life terms for man who killed ex-girlfriend, grandfather

September 7, 2018

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — An Arkansas man has been sentenced to consecutive life terms for killing his ex-girlfriend and her grandfather in southwestern Missouri.

Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley announced the sentence Friday for 40-year-old Christopher Paschall of Springdale, Arkansas. A jury found Paschall guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and other charges in September 2017, but sentencing was delayed in part by mental health examinations.

Paschall killed 28-year-old Casey Brace and 76-year-old Herb Townsend in 2015 while kidnapping his 2-year-old daughter. Paschall was the father of two of Brace’s three children.

Hawley’s office says that in addition to the life terms for murder, Paschall was sentenced to a consecutive 177 years in prison for armed criminal action and parental kidnapping.

The attorney general’s office assisted Barry County in the prosecution.